Owls Have Attention Of Nation, Foe

Florida Atlantic will find out where it fits in the Sun Belt Conference tonight, and so can the rest of the nation.

ESPN2 is broadcasting the Louisiana-Lafayette-FAU game, which kicks off at 7:30 at Lockhart Stadium, and it is the only Division I-A matchup on the schedule.

"National TV is big time. You want to put your big-boy pants on and go show everybody what we have here," said FAU linebacker Cergile Sincere. "I'm excited. I can't wait."

The Owls (2-4, 1-0) will be facing the preseason pick to win the conference in the Ragin' Cajuns (3-2, 0-0), who have won three in a row.

FAU has a two-game winning streak after starting 0-4, and the players and coaches know this game will show them where they stand, as their six remaining games are all in the conference.

"If we can win against this good Sun Belt team it will give us proof we will be competitive with the balance of the league. That is a good place to be at this juncture of the season," FAU coach Howard Schnellenberger said.

Louisiana-Lafayette players are out to prove they deserve the preseason hype and welcome the chance to do it before a national TV audience, and to extract some revenge at the same time.

"We are excited about the TV, but we really are focused on winning this game. We could have gone to a bowl game last year, but one team stopped us," said Jason Chery, a wide receiver for the Cajuns who is from Delray Beach and played at Spanish River High.

Chery was referring to the Owls, who beat the Ragin' Cajuns in Lafayette. It was just one of the two wins the Owls had as they finished last in the Sun Belt, and it kept Louisiana-Lafayette in a three-way tie for the conference title and out of the New Orleans Bowl.

"This is the same team that came into our house and beat us last year," Ragin' Cajuns coach Rickey Bustle said. "We respect FAU very much."

One FAU player who will be trying to ignore the ESPN2 cameras is quarterback Sean Clayton.

"I haven't thought about it too much because I don't want to. It is a big thing for this program, and I don't want to screw up on national TV," Clayton said.

Sincere predicted those tuning in around the country would see a good game.

"This is the biggest game of the season. We win this game, we will be in the driver's seat," Sincere said. "We will be flying around out there."

TONIGHT

LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE AT FAU

Kickoff: 7:30 p.m., Lockhart Stadium, Fort Lauderdale.

Tickets: Sideline $25, end zone $12 (youth and seniors $8), available at the stadium. FAU students free with valid Owls Card.

Directions: Exit I-95 at Commercial Boulevard, go west past Powerline, turn right on Northwest 12th Street. From Turnpike, exit at Commercial Boulevard and go east to Northwest 12th Street and turn left.

TV: ESPN2; Radio: WJNA (640 AM), WPSL (1590 AM).

Records: FAU 2-4, 1-0 in Sun Belt; Louisiana-Lafayette 3-2, 0-0.

Coaches: Howard Schnellenberger is 30-34 in his sixth season at FAU, 130-111-3 overall. Rickey Bustle is 20-31 in his fifth season at Louisiana-Lafayette.

When Louisiana-Lafayette has the ball: The Ragin' Cajuns use a spread option to churn out yards on the ground, and are averaging 209 yards per game rushing. ... QB Jerry Babb has passed for four touchdowns and run for four more. ... FAU is used to playing the option, and will try and slow the run and force the Cajuns to the air.

When FAU has the ball: In their past two games, the Owls have averaged 413 yards out of the pro-set offense. ... Charles Pierre had a career-high 103 yards rushing against Southern Utah. ... QB Sean Clayton has passed for 372 yards and three touchdowns in the past two games.